Helene was heading toward the island of Cozumel off Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula as of the National Hurricane Center's 10 p.m. CDT advisory, with sustained winds increasing to 60 mph. The storm is projected to dump heavy rain and trigger possible mudslides across western Cuba while passing between the island and the Yucatan on Tuesday night.

It is forecast to become Tropical Storm, and then Hurricane Helene during the next 24 hours.Threat level: The storm, which has been slow to organize over the far western Caribbean, is expected to rapidly intensify once it develops an well-defined center of circulation and moves into the southeastern Gulf of Mexico.